31 October 2009

When Kal Pen (aka Kumar of the great movie, Harold & Kumar go to White Castle) left the beautiful people of Hollywood to spend time with the bottom-feeding parasites in DC, he received some praise for serving his country or something. But now a FOIA request has revealed that he was mixed up in the recent NEA scandal which forced its Communications Director into resignation. From Washington Examiner (h/t Jammie):

Former actor and present White House associate director of public engagement Kalpen Modi was directly involved in planning the controversial conference call hosted by a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) flack to encourage tax-supported artists to create propaganda for President Obama, according to emails obtained by Judicial Watch via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

Uhoh, making trouble for Hollywood's messiah, that'll probably get you blacklisted. Which is unfortunate, because I thought Kal Pen was a great actor. Well, he'll always have the ability to write crummy HuffPo articles alongside all the other has-been celebrities.

30 October 2009

USA Today had a well-researched article about all the political appointees in the Obama administration who just happened to have fundraised over $100,000 for the campaign. But, for some reason, the story generated less interest in the blogosphere than the 25th anniversary of Ice Pirates. I don't know if it's because the article was in the Mikky-D's press, or because the practice is so common amongst both parties that none of the partisan operatives dare criticize, or because there was other corruption allegations that stole the limelight. But it seems like we just brush it aside as "business as usual" in Washington and wonder why the government is being run by incompetent boobs whose only purpose in life is to make speeches and false promises.

27 October 2009

Not that there's anything wrong with the UN Millennium Development Goals, I mean, who doesn't support ending poverty and world hunger? It's just a bit odd about how the entire organization takes its approach. After the UN Human Rights Council recognized "exceptions" to freedom of speech to appease Islamic dictators, and thinking that letting a thug like Ahmadinejad have the podium would be a swell idea, they now have their sights set on that miserable, hellhole of humanity...New York City. From NY Times:

The United Nations Human Rights Council appoints a rapporteur, or independent experts, to investigate human rights conditions around the world. In the case of Ms. Rolnik, a professor of urban planning at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil, her “mission” is to tour New York City and six other places in the United States and to report back to the United Nations General Assembly about housing rights violations and advances.

After that, “We send off letters to governments to ask, ‘Is this true? What’s going on?’ and to please intervene,” she said.

This is a great use of my tax dollars. Yes, NYC is expensive, as any American could tell you. Maybe they can ask why I had to pay $20 for a wireless connection at a hotel in Manhattan that was already $250 a night for a wedding I went to last year. They could even appoint Muammar Qaddafi to preside over the investigation instead of looking into human rights abuses like child soldiers, refugees being brutally killed, and other minor issues.

24 October 2009

There's an interesting article at New Geography that has angered progressives which challenges the assumptions on America's liberal bastions (Portland, Denver, Seattle, etc.). The author cites facts and figures which concludes that all the cities hipsters love to champion have more crackers than a Jack Johnson concert:

This may explain why most of the smaller cities of the Midwest and South have not proven amenable to replicating the policies of Portland. Most Midwest advocates of, for example, rail transit, have tried to simply transplant the Portland solution to their city without thinking about the local context in terms of system goals and design, and how to sell it. Civic leaders in city after city duly make their pilgrimage to Denver or Portland to check out shiny new transit systems, but the resulting videos of smiling yuppies and happy hipsters are not likely to impress anyone over at the local NAACP or in the barrios.

I would humbly suggest removing barriers and red tape to small businesses for urban revitalization, which seems to have been doing a good job in facilitating newly-arrived Americans to overcome poverty ever since Jamestown was founded in 1607. But, I don't have a Masters in Urban Planning, and I'm sure all those Green Jobs and more bike lanes that progressives love to champion will help the Latino immigrant community achieve middle-class prosperity.

21 October 2009

Obama aides are using their powerful White House platform, combined with techniques honed in the 2008 campaign, to cast some of the most powerful adversaries as out of the mainstream and their criticism as unworthy of serious discussion.

An article in Reuters points out something that absolutely no politician in America wants to say (unless of course it's a boring Ron Paul monologue), America's entitlement spending is sending it into collapse. This article is in reference to the $250 checks for old people to keep them from making trouble:

Two examples — one ridiculously expensive, one just ridiculous. But both reveal a nation completely unwilling to deal with current trillion-dollar deficits or long-term shortfalls many multiples of that number.

What confidence should dollar investors have that America will really cut entitlement spending? Very little. Instead, we are more likely to see huge tax increases that could cripple productivity, or further dollar neglect, or a central bank that turns dovish on inflation. Or perhaps all three.

If Washington doesn’t care to support the dollar, why should investors?

But who cares about the long-term economic stability when you can demonize Fox news for another news-cycle to distract the public. Politicians could care less about long-term viability and only seem to give two shits about pleasing their pet interests so they have campaign cash for the next go-around. But sooner or later, we have to blame ourselves for continuously electing these yahoos.

16 October 2009

Here's a real schnoozer of an article on Anita Dunn, the White House Communications Director, that has more hot air than the Balloon Boy odyssey. From a lengthy piece in the Washington Post:

With her CNN appearance on Sunday attacking Fox News as "a wing of the Republican Party," the White House dispatched its communications director to make one of its most aggressive salvos, in part because she alone in the communications department can withstand the blowback.

"She's tough, she knows how to handle herself in the national media, she's not intimidated by it and she enjoys the fray," said David Gergen, a former White House communications director. "It surprised me to see Anita Dunn out there, but if you are going to do it, go with your pro, and she's your pro."

Yawn. Nothing in the article about her husband's attempt to silence free speech during the Obama campaign, and nothing about the criticism Beck has brought up by citing quotes from mass murderers. Just a lame puff piece about how awesome she is and how it's justifiable for government officials to shut down Fox News like some Hugo Chavez public affairs strategy.

15 October 2009

Crank up the Hanson, buy some more shares in Pets.com, and pop the champagne, because it's 1999 all over again. Similar to March 1999, the Dow has gone above the 10,000 mark (again), and you can watch this retro CNBC video if you don't believe me. But, Peter Schiff drops a big turd in the party punchbowl by saying that the Dow is up because the dollar is in the crapper, and there's no real recovery in sight.

14 October 2009

Gay Patriot has an article in Pajamas Media about how gay liberals are perpetually disappointed by the politicians they help elect. This is in reference to how much ass-dragging is happening with the Obama administration on Don't Ask Don't Tell:

And Americans have become increasingly aware that the gay community does not speak with one voice. Nor does it march it lockstep to the tune of the Democratic Party.

Military.com notes that, contrary to conventional wisdom, it would actually require an act of Congress instead of just an order from the White House. But, it still seems as though Obama is waffling on a campaign promise that he could easily fulfill.

It's correct when Gay Patriot notes that gay issues aren't exclusively the realm of the democratic party. Some fellow reich-wingers have publicly stated that DADT has got to go including Ed Morrissey, CDR Salamander, and even the Sniper (no shit, the Sniper). I for one am for the repeal of the DADT, simply for the sake of no more awkward powerpoints for our troops during GMT sessions.

13 October 2009

You really have to feel sorry for our intellectual betters sometimes. After suffering through an awkward adolescence of getting pantsed and watching the quarterback pull all the tail in high school, they can't even get any respect in their adult lives. With the information age well upon us, any slack-jawed rube with a 'puter can tear down their policies they seek to enact over the rest of the country.

That's just one possible explanation for this no-good, terrible Op-Ed where Neal Gabler, last spotted calling everyone not on Team Obama McCarthyites, simply resorts to calling Americans a generally stupid lot for not trusting their government all the time. Not to overuse the "elitist" meme, but this is pretty up there. From Boston.com:

There is something bizarre about a country whose leaders have constantly to toady to their constituents and in which any criticism is tantamount to a lack of patriotism, but that describes America today. Every politician feels compelled to ape Jimmy Carter’s old words to the point where our alleged greatness has also become our national mantra.

Like it would be better if politicians didn't bother listening to their constituents and we had power-hungry madmen making all the decisions for us. That alternative had devastating consequences for much of the world's citizens during the 20th century, and I would suggest that a good deal skepticism towards the government is necessary for a nation's survival.

This editorial is clearly a response to the fevered populist piss-offedness that has gripped our country and prevented the sychophants of the Obama administration from getting everything they wanted. However, it wasn't Bubba Joe at the assembly plant that fucked up the economy, but eggheads like this guy. Why don't they engage in some self-assessment of their own policies before denouncing the frustration of our society at the moment.

11 October 2009

It's a bit of a concern when the top blogger from the influential Center for American Progress advocates that a weakened dollar would be a good thing for the country. From Yglesias:

Meanwhile, the interests of American tourists aside, a falling dollar is exactly what the American economy needs. It’s a way of, in effect, driving wage levels down to a level at which increasing employment is economical and getting us out of current sky-high unemployment. Of course for the same reason foreign central banks will want to bolster the value of the dollar in order to prevent unemployment from rising in Europe and Asia. I think the real risk here, however, is that foreigners will go to far in terms of trying to sustain an unsustainable situation and ultimately prompt a bigger breakdown.

I understand that Keynesian economics focuses on massive spending programs to get the country through tough times, but how is turning the dollar into monopoly money going to do anything but lower the standard of living and piss off the Chinese. True, it's a natural market correction that the dollar is dropping into the crapper, but doesn't that have to do with the federal government printing too much money? Maybe, the President and Congress should, you know, stop pissing away the taxpayer's money like the world was going to end.

I don't pretend to understand this crap, but I do know that I made the decision to convert all the surplus dollars I had into Thai Baht, and a lot of other people are buying gold like it was nude pictures of Megan Fox. Yes, I chose a country's currency where a coup could break out at any minute over Uncle Sam's money. Yes, that means I am allied with the Taliban and Hamas, and I'm sorry for that, but I've got to live off this money. Ever since we nixed the gold standard in the 70s, money has been backed by the credibility of the US government, and that credibility isn't looking too promising at the moment.

"Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future," the committee said. "His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population."

But what major foreign policy breakthroughs has he accomplished, not just promised to accomplish? If these are the standards for winning the award, then Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas" should've won it every year. And, yes, this post obviously means I hate America.

08 October 2009

It's difficult to explain what it's like to be a vet these days. Flat-out bigotry is rare. But, veterans seem to be like this politically-correct class of society that many folks seem to pity and avoid acknowledging because of some guilt complex...which is unfortunate. A disturbing disconnect from the warrior class and society at large can mean big trouble down the road, and at the very least leads to awkward situations like this. From CJ at A Soldier's Perspective:

Since I know that you spineless bastards in the school system are reading this, be prepared for a lawsuit! You were way out of line in bringing my personal life and my struggles with PTSD into a dispute with the school on the uniform policy. UNIFORM POLICY, FOLKS!! Where do you get off contacting the military about a private citizen matter? If I worked for Wal-Mart, would you have called the management there? If I were a REAL threat to anyone at that meeting, you should have called the police, not the military.

Despite the big game that CJ talks at his blog, I have met him personally and he is an extremely nice fellow. So it is a bit surprising that a dispute over his child's wardrobe at school would warrant a phone call from officials to his chain of command. A lot of veterans have PTSD, and it doesn't mean they are going to go run around the school screaming about Charlie coming over the wire like some Oliver Stone movie. But it is indicative of the growing divide in our American society.

07 October 2009

Reason notes that the criticism from Andrew Sorkin of the Masters of the Universe on Wall Street that ruined our country is subtle, but it pretty much shows that the cronyism between Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and the feds was worse than a Skull and Bones meeting. The piece is very informative, although somewhat dry. However, he does throw in this little tidbit to make people without MBAs happy:

Paulson, who had been living on barely three hours of sleep a night for a week, was beginning to feel nauseated. Watching the financial industry crumble in front of his eyes—the world he had inhabited his entire career—was getting to him. For a moment, he felt light-headed.

How to proceed in Afghanistan will be among the most difficult and fateful decisions that President Obama ever makes. But he's the one who has to decide, not his generals. The men with the stars on their shoulders -- and I say this with enormous respect for their patriotism and service -- need to shut up and salute.

Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, is entitled to his opinion about the best way forward. But he has no business conducting a public campaign to build support for his preferred option, which is to send tens of thousands more troops into a country once called the "graveyard of empires."

Some folks on the left say that the top general in Afghanistan only sees things through his "own narrow experience", which probably means another General Betrayus type ad from Moveon.org is coming soon to a newspaper near you. But taking the position that elected leaders should be responsible over the military does not categorically place you with the Code Pink crowd. However, in any chain-of-command, you hope and pray that those appointed over you are competent, have their priorities straight, and have your interests at heart. And, the President devoting his time and political capital to the 2016 Olympics, command-and-control economics, and not to the rapidly worsening Afghanistan situation doesn't inspire a lot of confidence.

03 October 2009

If calling Obama's plea at Copenhagen a gigantic waste of time is tantamount to Hanoi Jane, the concept of patriotism and nationalism sort of loses all meaning. Because, not supporting Obama's cronies in Chicago from feasting on an overburdened taxpayer to construct shoddy facilities for the Olympics is hardly grounds for being a moran, IMHO. Jonn has the last word on this:

You know who really lost today? Those folks we’ve sent to Afghanistan. Out of the 15 hours the President spent in Denmark, General McCrystal got 25 minutes with him. Imagine that; all of the time he spent on getting the Olympics brought to Chicago - seven years from now (apparently three years after Obama will be out office if he keeps acting like this) - he spent twenty five minutes with the guy fighting his war for him.

Oh well, highly important priorities like Ballroom Dancing will have to be done somewhere else.

Who is This Clown?

Nixon is a former Navy guy who did a couple of deployments at sea and spent a year in Iraq. He enjoys reading and writing about the strange intersection between war, politics, and the media. He enjoys being an ex-pat and NGO employee in Bangkok for the time being.